Pregnant Woman Accused of Trying to Board Plane with Gun

Authorities say a Transportation Security Administration screener spotted the loaded .25-caliber gun while scanning Kittell's carry-on backpack Friday night at an O'Hare terminal

A pregnant woman barred from possessing a firearm because of a previous Wisconsin robbery conviction is accused of trying to carry a loaded gun onto a plane at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

Twenty-six-year-old Angelique Kittell is charged with a felony count of boarding an aircraft with a weapon.

Authorities say a Transportation Security Administration screener spotted the loaded .25-caliber gun while scanning Kittell's carry-on backpack Friday night at an O'Hare terminal.

During a court appearance Saturday, Kittell claimed through her attorney she didn't know the gun with five live rounds was in the backpack.

Kittell is seven months pregnant and was prohibited from having a gun because of a 2008 bank robbery conviction in Milwaukee.

In addition, federal guidelines allow travelers to only transport unloaded firearms in a locked, hard-sided container as checked baggage.

Transportation Security Administration and Chicago Police Department records show 51 travelers were caught at O'Hare and Midway security checkpoints for attempting to board a plane with a firearm between 2012 and the end of 2013. Authorities said 35 of the guns were loaded and 12 were chambered.

Police reports show those arrested on the felony charge often tell arresting officers they "forgot the gun was in (their) bags."

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us